The Possibilitarian Project: Jessica Swift

The Possibilitarian Project is more than a blog series, it’s a movement. Because when you step forward as a Possibilitarian — and share the truth about how you created your beautifully messy, magnificently complicated & exquisitely joyful life and career — you give everyone else permission to dream bigger, be braver, and create what they want. And just like that, the impossible simply . . . . . isn’t.



Today we're talking with Jessica Swift, a hugely successful artist who makes things that make all of us smile. She is a master at color, at surface pattern design, at making art that screams with originality and products that scream with personality (have you seen her adorable rain boots?). She's also a risk taker, an innovator, an inspirationalist. It wasn't always this way, though, and today's conversation will take us on a journey of how she went from a full time job that left her restless and uninspired to a full time job as a working and successful (and most importantly, happy!) artist. 
One of the things I love about this interview is when Jess tells us about how someone else was instrumental in one of her pivotal moments, a moment when everything changed. It's a testament to the truth that none of us gets to where we are or where we're going along the Possibilitarian path without the help of someone else.. Almost all my pivotal moments involve someone else ushering me along and I loved reading this about Jessica's story too. Another thing I love about her story is that she went from knowing nothing about surface pattern design to teaching herself to putting her designs out there to now being a highly sought after licensing artist! It's a remarkable story....let's dive in. 
(An early work)::Roots::Who were you before you became a Possibilitarian? What was your ‘early’ career, or ‘previous life’?
I started my creative business when I was 23, just a couple years out of college. I graduated with a BFA in painting, and I promptly started working in a restaurant right after I graduated. I didn't make any art for an entire year. Little by little I started painting again, and I entered a juried art show about a year and a half later. And I got in! The show ended up being a massive success, and I quit my job in the restaurant to try being a full-time artist.

So, I started my business as a painter, exhibiting at outdoor juried art shows in Colorado (my home state). I didn't know a thing about working digitally, creating patterns, blogging, or anything for the first few years, so I just painted up a storm. I held a few part-time jobs here and there -- I was a Gymboree teacher for a little while (yes, I ran around singing with little kids!), I worked at the Boulder Contemporary Art Museum doing art installations every few months (which I LOVED), and I helped open a restaurant in Boulder, creating all the artwork, designing the menu, helping design the space, and generally assisting the owner. But I longed to just work for myself and sell lots of paintings the entire time I was working for someone else, even though it was just part-time.

I feel very lucky that I jumped into my creative career at an early age and was never stuck in a soul-sucking job, but it's definitely transformed a lot since those early days!

(first repeat pattern -  a beginning!)::Dreams::What did you (secretly) long for, in that previous life?
When I first discovered design blogs and all the artists who were selling their work on etsy, working with Chronicle Books, and that whole world, I LONGED to be a part of it all. I discovered surface pattern designers, and I was so upset that no one had ever told me this was a career I could choose! I'd hand-drawn patterns since I was a kid, but it was always just a fun thing that I did. It never occurred to me that I could learn how to do it on a computer and make a career of selling/licensing my work to companies for products that would be out in the world. I knew NOTHING about how to create digital artwork or patterns, but I couldn't get it out of my mind. I knew that's what I was meant to do, but I didn't know the first thing about how to get started. I realized that I wanted to start creating more commercial artwork - that I wanted to do more than just paint!

(recent design)::Moment of Truth::Was there a pivotal moment when everything shifted? What happened?
Absolutely. Moving to Georgia is 2007 was the catalyst for several pivotal moments in my career. In Boulder, I had a studio outside of my home, and I had a ton of space to work in. When I moved to Georgia, I began working out of a second bedroom in our apartment, because I couldn't afford an outside studio. My entire career up to that point had been based around exhibiting at juried art festivals, and since I didn't know anyone in or anything about the art scene in Georgia, I knew my career was going to change and I probably wasn't going to make any money from it for a while. (I wasn't selling anything online at this point.) I got a part-time job as a nanny to pay the bills. I worked the other part of the time on growing my business in Georgia. My work changed significantly, and I started painting a lot smaller. I was deeply inspired in the work I was creating. I was teaching myself to use Photoshop and Illustrator, and I was determined to learn to create digital repeat patterns! I was able to scan my paintings into my computer and create prints from it. I got serious about my etsy shop. I started blogging more. I connected with other bloggers. I put my work up on flickr, and I listed new items in my etsy shop every day.

I slowly started selling more, but the turning point came about 9 months after I'd moved to Georgia, when Erin from Design for Mankind wrote about my work on her site. All of a sudden, I was selling more than I'd ever sold before. I dreaded going to my nanny job every afternoon, because I just wanted to be working on growing my business and creating new artwork. It was a time of great inspiration for me, and the possibilities felt so big! I wanted to quit my job more than anything.

Another pivotal moment came about 2 months after I'd quit my job: I finally learned how to create a repeat pattern in Illustrator. It was the best feeling in the world, and I was instantly hooked and addicted to it. My first licensing deal, with T-Mobile, came just a month and a half after I created my first pattern - they'd found my work on flickr. It was confirmation that I was on the right path, and it was my first foray into the world of licensing and commercial art. It was exhilarating!

(recent work)::Courage::When that pivotal moment arrived, how did you gather the courage to cross the threshold into a Possibilitarian life & career?
I realized a couple months after that blog post that I was earning enough from my Etsy sales to cover all my expenses, so I bit the bullet and quit my nanny job. I was SO relieved and also SO scared. I had no idea if my little business would actually support me, but I knew I had to try. I found the courage to cross the threshold because I knew the alternative - nannying and commuting in terrible traffic every day - was making me miserable. I came home crying many days because I felt like I was wasting my time and my life. The decision just felt so natural when I finally made it, and it helped to remind myself that if it didn't work, I could always go get another job somewhere.

::Awesomeness::Where are you NOW? What have you created, what’s on the horizon, and how have you been applauded & recognized for your work? (This is your chance to brag away & BIG yourself up! Go for it!)
Now I'm in the self-created career of my dreams! I have a lot of different things going on all the time. And I just moved to Portland, OR from Atlanta, GA, so I'm excited for the inspiration and creative energy that being in a new place brings.

But here's what I'm up to and what's on the horizon for me:

• My online shop on my own website is humming along, and I'm getting ready to ravamp it a little bit. Gotta update the ol' website!

• I have a number of wonderful licensing partnerships, with companies like Case-Mate and Blend Fabrics, and a couple of really wonderful partnerships on the horizon (rugs! and an inspirational gift line with Demdaco!). So I get to see my work on amazing products out in the world -- total dream come true.

• Last year I raised nearly $25,000 on Kickstarter to fund the creation of my first line of rain boots (with inspirational messages on the inside), which are now available on my website and in a few stores. I'm currently trying to get the boots out into the world in a big way!

• I'm writing a book with my friend Michelle Ward, called The Declaration of You, which will be published in June 2013.

• I'm launching an e-book in mid-July called 'Jump Trust Repeat: How to Dive In and Thrive in Your Creative Business', and I'm so excited about it! It's the story of my business, in all its ups and downs and lessons learned. I hope it'll both inspire people who want to build a creative business of their own and serve as a useful tool full of practical information about how to make it happen.

• I've created some space within my career with this move to Portland, letting go of some parts that I don't love anymore, so there is some free space for new possibilities to come in... I'm waiting for them to reveal themselves to me! It's an exciting time, full of possibility and transformation. We'll see what happens!

(recent work)::Advice::What’s ONE piece of advice or encouragement you’d give to someone who’s facing their own pivotal moment, right now?
Jump in. Feel the fear and do it anyway. You can always make new decisions and change/revise your course as you go, but now is always the best to time to be brave and start giving your dreams the attention and trust they deserve. Even if you feel like you don't know what the heck you're doing, do it anyway. You'll never have all the answers before you start, so you might as well just jump in and figure them out as you go! :)

Thank you, Jessica!
You can connect with Jessica through
Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Blog

Jessica Swift is A Possibilitarian. Are you?Feel free to snag any and all of these for your sidebars. I just ask that you kindly link it to ThePossibilitarianProject.com so that others can join in the fun. Thank you!



Do YOU know a brave, tender & wildly inspiring person . . . someone who has created their dream life & career, on their own courageous terms? Nominate them for The Possibilitarian Project!